Cold water dispensers devices are well known in the art. Such types of device include an independent cooler of water, a refrigerator or a combined refrigerator-freezer that presents a single nozzle to dispense water that is refrigerated by a heat exchanger device, such as a cooling coil inside the refrigerator appliance.
FIG. 1 of the accompanying drawings shows a conventional device of prior art, in the form of a refrigerator 10 having a cabinet 12 and a door 14 that is mounted at the cabinet by hinges (not shown). The door 14 presents, typically, a recess 16 within which a nozzle 18 is mounted. It is further provided an on-off type electric switch SW, to which a voltage is applied from a source, inside the appliance, by means of a conductive line 2. The electric switch SW can be placed inside the recess 16 of the refrigerator door 14 and can be constructed in the shape of a plate type switch that is actuated, when pressure is applied against it, by a container or even directly by the user's hand. The electric switch SW can be also of the manually operated type. Other interrupters can also be mounted in the refrigerator door 14, to control ice cubes or ground ice dispensers devices.
As FIG. 1 shows, water, at normal or room temperature, is supplied from a source S, such as a residential hydraulic system, through a first inlet conduit 21, to a water filter 22. Filter 22 can be located externally to cabinet 12 of the refrigerator appliance, in order to be easily changed or repaired. The filter outlet 22 is conducted, through a second inlet conduit 23 and a control valve 24, usually of the solenoid type, to a heat exchanger inlet 26 that can take the shape of a cooling coil, of adequate dimension and configuration, to cool water, the said cooling coil can be positioned properly inside the cabinet 12 of the refrigerator appliance, to the water be cooled by the internal temperature in said cabinet 12. The heat exchanger outlet 26 is connected to the door 14 nozzle 18 by means of an outlet conduit 28. The first and second inlet conduits 21 and 23 and the outlet conduit 28 are generally formed of flexible material, wherein the outlet conduit 28 can be arranged through one of the hinges responsible for the door 14 assembly at the cabinet 12.
When utilizing the device illustrated in FIG. 1, an user positions a container R, such as a glass, cup or mug, inside recess 16 of door 14, moving container R against electric switch SW. This procedure closes an electrical circuit to supply voltage to the control valve 24, to open it. This causes water from the filter 22 to be supplied to the heat exchanger 26 to be cooled, and for water so cooled be then supplied to the nozzle 18, to be dispensed inside container R arranged under said nozzle 18. Cold water is dispensed inside container R during time electric switch 1 is kept depressed. In some types of refrigerators, control valve 24 is located between heat exchanger 26 outlet side and the nozzle 18. Yet in some instances, it is provided a reservoir (not shown) for the cold water, arranged upstream control valve 24.
In some cases, the user of the device wants to have available water at different temperatures other than cold water. For instance, user can wish water available at normal or room temperature, supplied from the water source S, hot water for a drink such as tea, or water at a temperature between cold water and hot water. These functions can not be achieved with prior art devices of the type shown in FIG. 1. So, it is desirable to provide a device with an arrangement that allows the supply of water at different temperatures and through a single nozzle.